Raymond James Investment Services has reached agreement with Merchant Investors to add the VIP onshore bond wrapper to its service offering. Investment managers will now be able to provide discretionary investment management services to clients with onshore bonds, with the assets held on the Raymond James platform. Cynthia Poole, director of relationship management and business support at RJIS, said: “We are delighted to announce this innovative onshore bond offering as an addition to the Raymond James proposition. This is a win for clients for whom an onshore bond is the right solution, in that it will for the first time allow these clients to access the benefits provided by discretionary managers rather than be limited to the investment choices made available by an insurance company.” Raymond James offers investment managers and advisors a choice of affiliation options and currently has 36 locations throughout the UK representing £1 billion in client assets. Bristol-based Merchant Investors Assurance was acquired by the Sanlam Group in December 2003 and now has in excess of £1.5 billion under management in the UK.